Nightmares
by RagingSerenity
Summary: They've been at war. They've killed and seen friends die. Now, with the throes of war behind them and the prospect of peace, how will they hold up? How will they deal with what happened?


**Disclaimer: Jealous of RR. I wish I owned these characters :P… Sadly, I just own the writing here, so that will have to do.  
**

**Set after the end of the Second Titan War, thus right after The Last Olympian. Just in case that doesn't transpire from the text. Might clash a little with the mood of "The Staff of Hermes", but this was written before September 6th.**

**Also, thanks to Innoverse for proofreading :).**

* * *

**Annabeth**

I never thought my dreams would get this bad. I mean, I get all the usual dream messages from gods and titans. All the good stuff that demigods get. I'll admit that some of them have been pretty scary, but that was all before the big fight against Kronos' army went down. The few times I actually got to sleep between all the fighting, I slept like the proverbial stone. No dreams of any kind.

But now that we finally have some peace, the nightmares have come. Randomly and not every night at first, but they've come. I dream of the fighting, and relive our friends' deaths. Silena, dying in my arms. That particular memory comes back to haunt me on a regular basis. It's scary how many of the details are burnt into my brain. Sometimes I think I can count the blisters where the acid scorched her skin, or smell the stench of it. I've woken up nauseous several times.  
But those aren't even the worst dreams. They are awful, yes, but I feel like they are getting less frequent and less violent. Like I'm slowly making peace with what happened.

While the first dreams fade away, new ones start to crop up. And those get to me much more than all the memories. Because they're about _him_. _Percy_.  
I dream of us during the battles. On the bridge, when we stood against Kronos. But in the dreams, I'm always too late. I never notice Ethan coming up behind Percy, and I don't intercept the knife. And Percy dies. _Every time_.  
Then, up on Olympus, when the bridge collapsed under our feet. Only it's me who gets away and Percy falls. Or Thalia and Grover come too late and I pull him over with me because he refuses to let me go.  
Athena's statue toppling on us, and it's Percy who pushes me out of the way. And, of course, he gets squashed by the stones.  
Finally, fighting Kronos. There's a whole bunch of different scenarios, but they kind of all end with Percy dead or dying and me unable to save him.

I've worried about him getting in trouble pretty much since I've known him. No surprise, given the way he attracts danger. And me. But worrying about him is nothing compared to seeing him die in my dreams. Two weeks after his birthday, I have at least one every night, often two or even three. And they start taking their toll on me.

I sleep less, and the few hours I get are by far not as relaxing as I need. After the first week, with only a handful of dreams, I was slightly irritated. After the second, with now about three times as many, I'm more than just a little grumpy. And not just from time to time – _all_ the time. It shows in everything I do. I'm usually quite good at archery, but after almost killing two other campers a half hour ago, Chiron suggested I try something different for a while. Sword-fighting worked, sort of, because I pictured my opponent as a monster. Problem is, I got so worked up that I nearly lopped someone's head clean off. Whoever it is, at least in my imagination, has the head of a _dracaena_, so I don't actually remember them. After my almost perfect attack, Percy steps in and disarms me, then unceremoniously drags me out of the arena.

He sits me down at the shore of the canoe lake, plopping down on the grass next to me. I stare out at the water, so impossibly calm that it makes a perfect mirror. I can see Percy look at me.

"What's wrong?" he asks.

I close my eyes. I do _not_ want to tell him. These nightmares are stupid, and I need to get a handle on them. I know they're not real, just projections of my fears. Well, my biggest fear, actually. At that moment it occurs to me that I've always considered my arachnophobia to be my biggest fear – yet I don't have nightmares of spiders eating me up. Or Percy. Instead I relive moments that we've barely survived, with the new twist that he doesn't.  
I shudder involuntarily as the last image of the previous night comes up again. We're up in the gods' throne room, and I've just been knocked back by Ethan. Percy turns to see if I'm alright, and I'm just about to call out to him that I'll be fine, when I see Kronos move up behind him. Then there's a glitch, and I see Kronos' scythe stick out of Percy's abdomen.  
I woke up with the look on his face imprinted in my mind, not believing that he was dying.

"Hey, Annabeth," I hear him say. His voice is so gentle, and it stirs something in my chest. I choke back a sob. I want to run. Staying around him while I'm having these images running through my head is _not_ helping. But before I can get up, I feel his arms snake around me, and he pulls me over into his lap. I crack.

Percy holds me while I cry. Big, ugly sobs, mostly muffled and dried by his shirt. All the while he rocks slightly back and forth, stroking my back and my hair, whispering calming things that I don't remember. When my tears are shed, I just hold onto him as tightly as I can. After a while, he speaks again.

"I wish you'd talk to me," he says. "I want to help you, you know? And I… I can't stand the idea that… that you're not feeling well and you're not telling me. That you're not giving me the chance to help."

"This helps," I mumble. It's true, it does. Being close to him gives me the reassurance I need. But either he's getting more sensitive or he just knows me too well, because he sees right through it.

"But for how long?" His voice is wavering, like he himself is holding back tears now. He swallows. "I'm scared, Annabeth."

That's new. I pull back and look at his face. "What of?"

"That something happens to you and I can't help," he says.

I look closer and all at once I notice how tired he looks. There are bags under his eyes, like he's not getting enough sleep.

"I have nightmares," he continues. "I'm back in the moments when I saved your life, only in my dreams, you always die. _Always_."

I'm trembling now. It's not possible that he's having the same kind of trouble as I, is it?

"Percy…"

"I see you being crushed under the sky. Sliced up by Kampê. Dying from the poison on Ethan's knife. Falling from the sky bridge…" He trails off, reaching up to his face to wipe at his eyes. "Tonight you were with me on the Princess Andromeda, instead of Beckendorf, and…"

I stop him short. "Stop, Percy. Please." The look in his eyes tells me how much the dreams hurt him, and, truth be told, seeing him in that much pain is just about killing me.

I gaze into his eyes for a long time. I still don't like the idea, but I have to concede that, sometimes, you just need someone to talk to to make things better. And if I can't talk to him, then who have I got? Besides, he's already gone ahead and told me about his dreams. I clear my throat.

"I have them, too. It's just, in my dreams… you die." I swallow against the lump in my throat. "And it's killing me."

For a moment, I see pain shooting through his eyes, then he pulls me impossibly close, crushing me against his chest. I squeeze back, because I know I need this, and I guess that he does, too. At least it feels like he does. After a minute, I have trouble breathing, but I don't care as long as there's still some air flowing into my lungs.

But eventually, we let up a little. He lays us down on the grass, and I slide off of him. I keep my arms around him, though. One beneath his neck, the other across his chest. He rolls onto his side, facing me. His free arm – the one I'm not resting my head on – is coming up, and he brushes a strand of my hair back, tucking it behind my ear.

"Feel better?" he asks.

"Mhm." I sigh. I can see from his eyes that he's better, too. Less pained. But his brow's still furrowed. I inch my head towards his, keeping eye contact until my lips meld with his. It's a "thank you" and an "I love you" without words. We haven't said it yet, but I'm pretty sure that he's much more to me than just a passing crush. And the way he looks at me sometimes makes me hope that it's the same for him.

The kiss ends an indefinite amount of time later. As I pull back, I feel the urge to smile. _Really_ smile, a true "I'm so happy right now that nothing can kill my joy" smile, and I can't remember having felt that way since the first nightmare. He smiles back at me, and there's a look in his eyes that I've only seen a few times. _Awe_.

A while later, the conch horn blows. Percy nudges me, but I really don't feel like getting up. His arm is comfortable, and his embrace makes me feel safe. Like the nightmares can't touch me.

"Let's stay here," I say.

"Okay," he replies softly. "But we're gonna have to watch for the harpies."

I shake my head, as much as I can. "There's been no curfew since Tantalus," I remind him.

"Still," he says, "you never know what these grumpy old chicken-ladies are up to." But his eyes are shining. He doesn't want to move any more than I.

He rolls on his back and I wiggle closer to him, nestling my face in the crook of his neck. Thoughts start racing around my head unchecked, but one keeps pushing at the forefront: "He's here with me. He's safe. He's _alive_."

I wake to the sound of voices. Well, not really _wake_. My mind wakes, registering the voices, but my body's still asleep. I notice the regular rise and fall of Percy's chest under my arm and know that he's still asleep, too.

"Should we dump them in the lake?" That's Connor Stoll.

"I don't know, bro." His brother Travis. "I mean, last time we did that, they didn't come up for hours."

"When will you two learn that water pranks don't work on a son of Poseidon?" asks Will Solace.

"We could sound the alarm, see how fast they get up." Travis again.

"_Oh_ no, you won't!" Clarisse. No doubt. "No one messes with the alarm. _Clear_?"

"Hey, hey, calm down. I was kidding."

"We could find us a spider and drop it on her," suggests Connor. "You know how these Athena kids are when it gets to spiders."

I can just barely stop myself from flinching. He wouldn't…

"Don't you _dare_!" I almost smile when I hear the outrage in Rachel's voice. "Hasn't anyone of you noticed that they haven't slept much in the past few weeks?"

Silence ensues, and I suspect that bewildered looks are passing around.

"They haven't?" Leave it to one of the Stoll brothers to play Mr. Oblivious.

"No, they haven't," says Rachel. "I'm not sure why, though I have my suspicions. Anyway, you are _not_ going to deprive them of their sleep. They need it."

"Meh…" Travis.

"Spoilsport." Connor.

I imagine Rachel narrowing her eyes at them. "Shooh! Run along and fetch a blanket, will you?"

"Go fetch it yourself," they shoot back, but I hear retreating footsteps.

We are alone again for a few minutes, then soft footsteps announce Rachel's return. I feel a blanket being spread over us, and for a moment, a warm hand settles on my back.

"Sleep well, you two," Rachel whispers.

I thank her silently and slip back into sleep.

* * *

"Ahem…"

I startle awake. My mind is still fuzzy as I try to restore order to last night's memories and my present state. The latter equals to lying on grass, under a blanket and snuggled up to Percy. I remember waking up to the discussion between the Stolls how they should best wake us, and Rachel intervening on our behalf, saving our sleep and bringing us the blanket.  
But this voice does not belong to any of the campers.

"Sleep well?"

I groan inwardly. Chiron. Well, at least it's not Dionysus. Besides some choice remarks, he would've raised a small hell at this "outrageous violation of camp regulations". With Chiron, we might get away with a warning. Or maybe, if we explain our nightmares to him, he'll make an exception to the rule.

I feel Percy stir. Then he groans, rendering all possible further attempts at playing possum rather pointless. I roll onto my back and blink, letting my eyes slowly adjust to the bright morning light.

"Good morning, Chiron," I reply, using my least grumpy morning voice. It comes surprisingly easy, and I realize that I've _really_ slept well. No nightmares to speak of. "Yes, I, for one, have slept well."

Percy's greeting is more of a slur. "'Sitmornin'already?"

"Yes, Percy, it is indeed already morning," Chiron replies, his voice sounding amused. "And I am slightly concerned that you have slept right through breakfast."

Percy is up faster than lightning. "Wha…?"

Chiron chuckles, and I don't bother fighting the grin that spreads on my face. That's the five more years at camp that I have on Percy; knowing when Chiron uses his knowledge of a particular camper to make him or her do as he desires.

"Relax, Seaweed Brain," I say. "He's joking. Breakfast probably just started."

"Tsk, tsk, Annabeth," says Chiron, "it's not nice to spoil other people's fun by giving away their tricks."

I sit up beside Percy. "Sorry," I say, grinning at Chiron.

The centaur shakes his head. "But you're right, I'm afraid. If you hurry, you won't be that late."

He turns and heads up to the mess hall. After a few yards he turns around. "You two will have a chat with me after breakfast, though." Then he trots uphill.

I look at Percy. "Let's go, Seaweed brain. I'm kinda starving."

He grins at me. "Me, too."

We leave the blanket on the ground, planning to pick it up later. Percy slips his hand into mine, and I smile.

"I didn't have nightmares tonight," I say as we attack the hill.

"Me neither," he replies.

Halfway up the hillside, I stop him. "Listen," I whisper, "Chiron's probably going to lecture us on regulations later. And he'd be right, in general, but I think that if we explain our nightmares to him, we might be able to get him to make an exception."

"You think he'll let us sleep in the same cabin?" he blurts out.

My eyes widen a little. I hadn't thought of that. "What? No, I was thinking about last night…" I trail off, a plan beginning to form in my mind. "But, you know, that might not be a bad idea… No, not bad at all. Though I'm not sure how we could get him to agree to that…"

He leans in and shuts me up with a quick kiss. "If there is a way, I'm sure you'll figure it out, Wise Girl. But right now, I'm starving."

I have to fight a laugh as I let him drag me up to the mess hall.

There are more than a few odd looks being tossed our way, both as we enter hand in hand and as we split up to sit at our respective tables. But I don't care about the looks, because really, nothing has happened. Percy and I have slept together, yes. _Literally_. And it worked perfectly well for both of us, so what's the harm? So long as nobody asks me, I'm not gonna start saying anything. And indeed, it seems that people are perfectly content shooting us odd looks and keeping quiet.

After breakfast, Percy comes by to collect me, and together we follow Chiron to his office in the Big House. Once there, he folds his horse half into his wheelchair, bringing him to eye level with us since we're sitting in the chairs in front of his desk. He favors each of us with a stern look.

"You both know camp regulations," he begins, "so we can cut right to the core. What's wrong?"

Well, I didn't expect that question.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"Annabeth, you know what I mean."

Percy's brow wrinkles, and he looks at me, then at Chiron. "You mean, you know we wouldn't violate regulations, so something has to be wrong?"

I shake my head slightly, fighting a smile. Yes, he's good at stating the obvious sometimes. And then I launch into an explanation of our nightmares, and how we ended up at the shore of the lake, wrapped around each other. I leave out the bit about how we got the blanket, since I was supposedly asleep.

Chiron listens patiently. A while after I finish, he says, "I believe that nowadays, your condition is called post-traumatic stress disorder. You've had a traumatic experience, and the stress of it is haunting you."

I quirk an eyebrow. "In a nutshell, right?"

He inclines his head. "I don't think you're interested in the full rundown, are you?"

We both shake our heads.

"So, what's the verdict?" Percy asks. Sometimes I hate how undiplomatic he can be.

"Well…" Chiron strokes his beard. "You're not the first ones to report these kind of nightmares, though it seems that only very few campers are affected. Demigods are usually more resistant against after effects of battles… Anyway, considering your performance over the last two weeks, _especially_ yesterday," he shoots me a pointed look, "we have to do something about your sleep. You don't have trouble falling asleep, right?"

We shake our heads "No".

"So a sleeping draught or something to that effect would be pointless… Although there are ways to guarantee a dreamless sleep, I fear those would only serve to suppress your anxieties, making them bubble up at some other, probably less desirable, point in time." He looks me straight in the eye. "Any ideas on your part?"

I swallow and look over at Percy. He gives me a small smile and nods ever so slightly. I look back at Chiron.

"We didn't have any nightmares tonight, Chiron," I say. "It appears that being close to one another helps us to… keep them away. I'd say it calms our anxieties."

"So?"

"Well…" I pause. He knows what I'm going to say. He knows it's against regulations, and that Mr. D would throw a fit, were he here. But he wants me to say it, and I realize that it's a test. "I know it's against regulations, Chiron, but I think it would help Percy and me if we were allowed to, well, sleep together. As in 'sleep in the same bed', of course. We wouldn't be doing anything else."

Chiron raises an eyebrow.

"Well, nothing that we wouldn't be doing in public," I amend, feeling a little bit of heat on my cheeks.

The smirk that passes over his face is almost lost in his beard. "You know I trust you. Both of you. And I _am_ inclined to set up an exception to the rule, but we have to be very, _very_ careful, or this might end up as a very problematic precedent."

"You're talking about campers pretending to have nightmares so they'll be allowed to sleep in the same bed?" Percy asks. Very astute. I have to stifle a giggle.

"Yes, Percy," Chiron says. "You two will be allowed to share a bed in cabin three, provided that you both swear to me by the River Styx that you will maintain the same decorum when you are in that cabin as you would in public. This will merely be a sleeping arrangement to help you with your nightmares. _Not_ a carte blanche for raging teenage hormones. Got it?"

My cheeks are getting hot, and out of the corner of my eye I see Percy blush, too. We share a quick look, then nod at Chiron and swear. Afterwards, he shoos us out of his office to clean up Percy's cabin, and see about the beds.

I have to fight a laugh as I stand in the doorway, watching Percy dash around to gather up pieces of laundry and armor and various things that I _don't_ want to think about. He dumps everything on a free bunk, then turns to me, scratching his head.

"Uh… it's not in top shape, I know, but…"

"It's fine, Percy," I say. "I'll make sure _you_ keep it cleaner from now on."

"Uh, does… does that mean you'll stay here _permanently_?"

He sounds nervous, and I'm not sure what to make of it. "Why? Don't you want me to?" Only after the words have come out I realize that that would be the equivalent of "moving in together", even if it's only at camp.

"Don't… don't you think that's a little… fast?" he stammers. "I mean, we've been dating for just two weeks, and–"

"Shut up, Seaweed Brain." Okay, that's a little harsher than necessary, but he does shut up. "Let me put it this way: you're my best friend. Who happens to be my boyfriend, too, but let's put that aside for a moment. You're my best friend, and if I had to pick anyone for a roommate, it'd be you. Okay?"

"If you 'had to pick'?"

I shake my head. "Don't make this complicated. We get along fine, don't we?"

"Yes, but all the time…"

Now I can't keep the laugh inside. He's just so adorable when he worries. "Hey. How much time do you think we'll spend in here?"

"Uh…"

"Not much more than sleeping at night and maybe a few hours between activities. Besides, I have to get started on designing Olympus, so I'll be pretty busy anyway and won't have the time or resources to pick a fight with you." I conclude my statement with a wink.

He stares at me for a minute or two. Then he asks, "Need help carrying your things?"

A smile forms on my lips. "I'd appreciate that. But let's clean this up first, 'kay?"

An hour later, we have pulled two bunks together so we won't have to worry about tumbling out of bed at night. It'll do until we can get a bigger bed. My laptop and a bunch of early sketches are arranged on a big desk that Chiron has allowed us to take from the Big House. I make a mental note to talk to Jake Mason from Hephaestus' cabin about helping me with a _real_ drafting table. One with back light and all that.  
Afterwards, we head out, Percy to the climbing wall and I to archery. I feel a lot better today, and it shows in my score. All arrows hit the target, and most of them are clustered in the inner quarter of the radius. Not as good as the Apollo kids, of course. Big surprise. But it's good enough for me. Especially after yesterday.

At lunch I sit with my brothers and sisters. Even though I have moved all my things to Percy's cabin, I'm still a daughter of Athena, and as such I sit at the Athena table. Besides, Percy and I will have plenty of time to hang out and talk, and it's not like we're attached at the hip or something. He catches my eye from two tables across, just as he wipes a bit of food from the corner of his mouth. I can't help the silly grin that curls my lips upward. He smiles back, and I feel a flutter in my stomach. Gods, I'm really falling hard, aren't I?

We're subject to more than a little talk around the campfire later, but it doesn't really matter what the others say. In a week or so, this'll be old news and they'll move on to something else. Katie tells a joke and I laugh. Percy does, too, and since I'm leaning into him, I feel the rumble in his chest travel through my body.

When we finally go to bed, there's a brief fight about who gets to sleep at the wall and who'll have to take the side closer to the gap between the mattresses where the two bunks are touching. I win and get the wall, but as we curl up under the blanket, I whisper, "We'll switch tomorrow. Promise."

He kisses the top of my head. "Sweet dreams, Wise Girl."

I squeeze him. "You, too, Seaweed Brain."

And for the second night in a row, I sleep without nightmares.


End file.
